(1974) Medal U.S. Customhouse Bronze New Orleans, LA

Coin Details

Description

This bronze medal from 1974 depicts the United States Customhouse in New Orleans, Louisiana, part of a series honoring historic federal customhouse buildings. The New Orleans Customhouse, begun in 1848 and not fully completed until 1881, is one of the largest and most architecturally significant federal buildings from the antebellum period. Designed by Alexander Thompson Wood in the Egyptian Revival and Greek Revival styles, the massive granite structure covers an entire city block. New Orleans was the most important port in the American South and one of the busiest in the nation, handling vast quantities of cotton, sugar, and other commodities flowing down the Mississippi River from the American heartland. The customhouse processed duties on imported goods that fueled the cosmopolitan culture of antebellum New Orleans. The building's protracted construction, interrupted by the Civil War and Reconstruction, mirrors the turbulent history of the city and region it served.

Rarity Notes

Scarce. Part of the 1974 U.S. Customhouse medal series. Bronze. New Orleans was one of America's most important historic ports.

Cross References

PCGS #917169; U.S. Customhouse New Orleans, LA; Federal Architecture Series 1974